Kansas 'pope' leads a flock in exile

Church's move to modernism prompted 1990 special vote

David Bawden, who is also known as Pope Michael, claimed ascendancy to the papacy in 1990. He lives on a farm near Delia where he runs the Annunciation Seminary that has one full-time and one part-time student. Bawden is shown here holding a copy of his latest book, "54 Years that Changed the Catholic Church: 1958-2012."

David Bawden, who is also known as Pope Michael, claimed ascendancy to the papacy in 1990. He lives on a farm with his 83-year-old mother near Delia, where he runs the Annunciation Seminary, which has one full-time and one part-time student. Bawden is shown here holding a copy of his latest book, "54 Years that Changed the Catholic Church: 1958-2012."

DELIA — Attired in a black cassock that covered all but the bottom of a pair of red pants and Nike flip-flops, David Bawden on a recent Sunday afternoon reclined on a couch in the living room of his Vatican in Exile, a wooden-frame farm home in southwestern Jackson County, and talked about events that led to what he said was his election as pope of the Roman Catholic Church.

Bawden matter-of-factly reflected on the 21 years that have passed since 1990, when he was voted in as pope by six people who gathered at his parents’ second-hand store in nearby Belvue.

His biggest beef with the Roman Catholic Church, which he said led to his papacy, was its move toward modernism, starting with Vatican II, which included doing away with the traditional Latin Mass.

By now, Bawden has heard the whispers and out-loud criticisms that have come his way since he declared himself the head of the Roman Catholic Church and its 1 billion adherents worldwide.

Yet he remains committed to his papacy, saying it was ordained of God, and that nothing will stop him from being pope.

A book he wrote that was released this past May, “54 years that Changed the Catholic Church: 1958-2012,” chronicles Bawden’s claim to the papacy and also sheds light on where he said the Roman Catholic church went astray.

For his new book, he said, “I discovered some very important information that would help present the case more clearly.”

The 196-page self-published book provided details of Catholic Church changes beginning with the election of Pope John XXIII in 1958.

That pope, and all who followed him, weren’t truly Catholic, Bawden asserts, because of the “pseudo council called Vatican II” that resulted in their elections.

A few faithful Catholics realized they could lawfully take the matters into their own hands and began the restoration of the church, Bawden said.

Some were emboldened by Roman Catholic archbishops who were critical of Vatican II — including Marcel Lefebvre and Ngo-Dihn Thuc.

Bawden, a native of Oklahoma City, came to St. Marys in 1980 after he and his family became members of a breakaway Catholic group known as the Society of St. Pius X.

Bawden in the late 1970s had attended St. Pius X schools but was asked to leave. Despite his efforts to return, he was barred from being a student again.

“There was some infighting in the seminary, and I got in the middle of it,” Bawden said. “I was dismissed because of that.”

While continuing to pursue his vocation, Bawden held fast to his belief that Rome no longer had authority for the Catholic Church, that popes it elected were heretics and therefore the papal position was vacant.

It was Bawden’s belief that if the College of Cardinals wasn’t equipped to elect a pope, the duty fell to laypeople in the church.

Before he staked his claim to the papacy, he outlined his problems with the modern Catholic church in a 1990 book titled “Will the Catholic Church Survive the 20th Century?” He said he wrote the book to appeal to other traditionalists like himself.

After his book was published, he sent notices of an upcoming papal vote to traditionalists around the globe. But only six people showed up for the pivotal vote that took place July 16, 1990.

One was Bawden’s late father, Kennett, who died in 1995. One was his mother, Clara “Tickie” Bawden, 83. One was Bawden himself.

Then there were three others, all of whom, Bawden lamented, since have “fallen away” from the Catholic Church that he leads.

Bawden said he had an inkling he might be voted in as the pontiff that day.

“I thought it was a possibility,” he said. “But it was in God’s hands, who showed up to vote. We had to get the job done.”

More than two decades later, his actual followers are few, he acknowledges, with but one full-time and one part-time student in the Annunciation Seminary he runs out of the house that he shares with his mother.

Yet he says many people — perhaps millions — around the globe share his sentiments and mindset.

Bawden has a presence on the World Wide Web at www.vaticaninexile.com and even has a fan club on Facebook, something he said caused him to chuckle when he stumbled upon it.

“Someone in Germany started it,” he said. “Yes, I was surprised.”

His sermons are uploaded on YouTube by a follower in Rockford, Ill. People keeping tabs on him are notified each time a new sermon is posted.

A film class from the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind., made a visit to Delia a few years ago and produced a documentary on Pope Michael, parts of which can be found on the Internet.

“I was impressed by that,” Bawden said of the documentary. “I was quite impressed with the quality of work they did and their questions.”

Despite the few followers in his flock, Bawden said he doesn’t see himself as an outcast in the Delia community, located about 10 miles north of Rossville.

Bawden said he visits with people when he sees them at the grocery store in Rossville or when he passes them on the country roads in his neck of the woods. The conversations are always cordial, he said.

Each day starts with Mass, followed by prayer, seminary classes and work around the farm.

Bawden announced recently that he was ordained a priest and consecrated a bishop in December by a bishop in the National Catholic Apostolic Church, qualifying him to celebrate Mass.

Bawden is cultivating a grape arbor for wine-making for the daily Masses.

He and his several followers also are in the process of taking classic Catholic books — some of which are borrowed from the Benedictine College library in Atchison — and scanning them into computers, so they can be republished in an “on-demand” printing arrangement with a publisher.

Bawden’s mother supports her son and said his rise to the papacy started when he was a boy.

“I was trying to raise him right — to raise him in the Catholic Church,” she said. “When you see it disintegrating in front of you, you feel like something has seriously gone wrong.”

She said her closest family members were convinced that they needed to pursue what they believed to be the correct teachings of the Roman Catholic church, even if it meant taking a road less traveled.

It hasn’t always been an easy road, but she said she has no regrets.

“Everyone in their time and place — grace is coming to them,” she said. “And it works perfectly.”

Phil Anderson can be reached at (785) 295-1195 or phil.anderson@cjonline.com. Follow him on Twitter @Philreports. Read his blog at CJOnline.com/blog/perspectives.

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I'd require my "flock" to wear handmade colorful knit scarfs, everyday. We would only drink 1/2% milk during the week and diet Coke and vodka on the weekends and we would worship Elton John. Oh and you would be considered a defector if you had any purse in your wardrobe other than DB.

This story will appear in religion section of Saturday's Capital-Journal (Jan. 14). Phil Anderson writes about a variety of religion-related events and people for the section each week.

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Thanks for providing an explanation, but this story is not religion-related. It is about a mentally ill person who thinks they are pope.

It has as much value as a religion-related story as writing about the guy on the street corner that thinks he is God.

It would be one thing if he led a congregation because he disagreed with the modern Church's teachings, but to declare himself pope of all Catholics because six people voted him in is an indication of a delusional person not deserving of a serious story about religion.

I think a LOT more interesting, factual and timely things could be found to put into the religion section. You don't include this nut for the same reason that you would not want to include Fred and his band of loonies in the religion section. (By the way...did anyone else catch the National Geographic program last night...."Most Hated Family in America"...I will give you three guesses WHICH family that was about...lol)
Find something that builds our town and state up...not something that makes us look like escapees from the closest rubber padded room!!

He is not on TV or running a tent show making millions in tax exempt bucks by healing hemorrhoids , diverting hurricanes or establishing non accredited universities and law schools . He doesn't even picket funerals , much less pick our pockets .
superswagg56 - love that "We're tiny we're tooney!!! We're just a little looney". Fits Kansas to a T , espically with the legislature in session .

This just in; Maxcat1 just received 25 votes for Emperor of the World the 1st, (no one else got any votes..go figure?) and his first official act was to declare all persons equal, well equal to everyone but Him that is after all he is emperor, duh!

After his first act as Emperor, Maxcat1 moved his flock to the south pasture and was heard pondering this statement; sheeple can vote can't they because I personally check each and every one of their picture ID's so I'm sure it was legal.

By the way for those of you that are curious; yes Maxcat1 did run as a republican thusly guaranteeing his election to this post here in Kansas regardless of his position that all persons are equal which he kept totally obscured from his followers throughout the election cycle.

This article is TRIPE. Wrap it in as many layers of the CJ that your little heart desires and it still stinks like days old fish, (I would suggest the Sunday comics as an appropriate choice for that procedure).

If a religious writer has to dig this deep into the bottom of the story barrel for an article then perhaps this papers editors should consider trying to present some real news instead of this tripe.

How about an article investigating what all any churches tax exempt dollars are being used for? You know tell us all about all the Christian activities; like summer bible resort vacations, Jesus cruises, holy water parties and all that kind of stuff.

You know maybe a story about, what would Jesus do? Na, that would be way to religious for most religious, so that idea is out.

I still question why this story is being run in the CJ. I'm sure the people who read the religion section will not feel warm and fuzzy or anything else worthwhile because this guy is included in the newspaper's religious coverage.

How can WE enjoy our Freedom of Religion if we don't let others do the same!?

Whether we agree with him or not -- he has every right to his own views and his religion. Why wouldn't the newspaper do a story on this if they do stories on other church's goings on?

I am not a catholic but I enjoyed reading this story. It is very interesting. I don't necessarily agree with him but there are lots of religions, or maybe the better word would be denominations, that I don't agree with 100%.

Remember in order for you and me to practice our own religion freely -- we have to allow others the same right. Otherwise it is not freedom at all!

OBVIOUSLY, THIS MAN HAS SOMETHING WRONG WITH HIS THINKING....BUT, YOU ARE DISGUSTING FOR PUTTING THIS ON YOUR SITE AND EXPOSING SOMEONE LIKE THIS WHO HAS SOMETHING WRONG WITH THEM. WHY ON EARTH WOULD YOU PUT THIS ON YOUR PAGE FOR NEWS? SHAME ON YOU.